R.I. Film Fest producer Joseph Marshall dies

<center>Joseph Marshall, 90</center> /
Joseph Marshall, 90 /

NEWPORT – Navy Lt. Cmdr. (ret.) Joseph Marshall, 90, a founder and producer of the Rhode Island International Film Festival, which in August marked its 10th year, died early yesterday at Heatherwood Nursing and Rehab Center in Newport.

In recent decades, he had been active in the Rhode Island arts community – his third “career” and perhaps his dearest.

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Mr. Marshall was a founding member and board officer of the Flickers Arts Collaborative. Established in 1982 as the Newport Film Festival, it grew to include RIIFF and other festivals, and now plays a key role in the state’s film industry. He also had been active in other organizations, including the R.I. Film Forum, ScriptBiz, the Jubilé Franco Américain and the Jamestown Chamber Music Series.

Before retiring, he had worked for 18 years at Raytheon Corp., at the Submarine Signal Division in Portsmouth, where he commanded the Sub Sig, a research vessel.

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He previously had served in the Navy for 25 years before retiring as a lieutenant commander in 1959, and had received several medals and commendations for his work as a deep-sea diver in the Pacific during World War II. Mr. Marshall was a member of the Retired Officer’s Association, the U.S. Naval Institute, the Navy League and the Naval War College Foundation.

The husband of the late Viola Mildred Beck Marshall, with whom he shared his life for 57 years, he is survived by two sons and their families – Joseph Marshall Jr. of Greene, and his wife and son; and George Thomas Marshall of Newport and his partner, Lawrence J. Andrade – and by family friend Eric R. Bronner of Bristol.

A memorial celebration of his life will be held Monday, Feb. 26, at noon [Note: the time has changed], at Memorial Funeral Home, 375 Broadway, Newport. Burial with military honors will follow at 3 p.m. at the R.I. Veterans Cemetery in Exeter. Contributions to his scholarship fund for children of military families may be may sent to The Joseph and Viola Marshall Fund, P.O. Box 162, Newport, RI 02840.

Additional information can be found at www.film-festival.org.

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